Campaigners fighting the expansion of Coventry Airport have been ordered to take down protest signs because they break planning rules.

The protesters - who claim the airport has flouted planning laws by putting up a temporary passenger terminal - have been told their signs are illegal and must go.

The Campaign Against the Expansion of Coventry Airport (CAECA) has been told to pull down its large "fight flights" and "no flights" signs from Baginton village.

Warwick District Council planners say the group's signs are effectively advertisements, which require planning permission.

CAECA has agreed to take them down and yesterday removed those in Baginton and were today taking down one at the west entrance of the airport.

The move comes in a week when the fate of the airport's temporary passenger terminal was set to be decided at the High Court in London.

The court will rule on the district council's dispute with the airport over the use of the temporary passenger terminal for new low cost flights.

Lia Border, of CAECA, said that planners could rest assured they would not need to take the campaign group to court.

She said: "We are aware of the council's feelings and we are complying with their requests and just wish that the airport would do the same.

"We were given 28 days to remove the posters but have done so in less than a week, as soon as were were asked to do this we did.

"We have acted responsibly and there will be no need for enforcement action or a trip to the High Court."

Mike Duffet, principal ..TEXT: planning officer for Warwick District Council, confirmed that enforcement against CAECA action could be taken if the signs were not removed.

He said: "The banners are, in effect, advertisements. They are free-standing signs and therefore they require advertising consent or should be removed.

"We have had discussions with the organisers and explained the situation to them. They have a time period of early June and there is potential enforcement action that we could take, but we are hoping that it will not come to that."

A spokesman for the supportcoventryairport.co.uk website said "After all CAECA have said about the supposed breaches of planning rules by the airport, it seems hypocritical in the extreme for the protesters to flout planning law. We welcome the council's action."